The Reason Past
by DanielFactoid
Summary: [complete]Monica runs into Richard and Chandler finds out. Some Mondler mush. Please read and review, 1 chapter long.


"The Reason Past"

Show: Friends

Genre: General, Romance, lalalala

Rated: K+ (no good reason for this rating, it's just not K or T, so…:shrug:)

Pairing(s): MC mush

Summary: Monica runs into Richard again and Chandler finds out about it. Some MC mush.

Season: Ninth, somewhere around "The One with the Sharks". Chandler still works in Tulsa. Also, the last time I remember seeing Richard was in "TOW the Proposal", so if we saw him after that…too bad.

Author's Note: I got this idea for a story a few nights ago. I was just sitting in my bed, trying to get to sleep, but I knew there was an idea in my head somewhere…so it finally came to me- Richard. I've always wanted to write a Mondler story with Richard in it…I just had to come up with some sort of plot. And I saw "TOW the Sharks" (I think that's what it's called) yesterday, and it was just too funny…so here we are. I never know which genre my stories would be, so…:shrug: UNBETAED.

Disclaimer: I don't own "Friends" or anything associated with it… well, I do love Chandler, but he's Monica's, so...

Dedicated to…um... Matthew Perry, who makes me laugh everyday! I'm dedicating it to someone I don't know…that's just sad.

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Monica walked through the aisle, picking up a movie occasionally. She put one down in disgust and moved on. Rachel had asked her to rent a film, but she was also looking for something to watch when Chandler came home the next day.

She sighed and walked to the counter, placing down the movie, "Just this one, please."

"Monica?"

Monica spun around.

_Richard. _

"Um…" she mumbled, and pulled out her wallet, fumbling. She shoved a ten-dollar bill into the cashier's hand, grabbed the movie, and walked out of the store without a backwards look at her ex.

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"I'm back!" Monica called into the apartment. Joey, Ross, Phoebe, and Rachel looked away from the TV and greeted her, all wearing small smiles.

"Did you get it?"

"Yeah," Monica said distractedly, placing the movie on the table and taking off her coat, "But you'll never _believe_ who I ran into in the movie store!"

"Oooh, who?" asked Rachel, leaning in.

"Okay, I was just standing in line at the place, right? So I'm renting the movie, and I hear this guy say behind me- 'Monica?', like he's not sure it's me or he's just nervous. So I turn around, and it's _Richard!_ So-"

"Uh, Mon-" Joey tried to interrupt.

"It was just so _weird_ seeing him there! I mean, the last time I saw him was-"

"Mon-" Phoebe began, but she was cut off.

"Well, I guess it was the day me and Chandler got engaged…wow…it's been that long-"

"Monica!" Ross yelled. She turned to him.

"What?"

"Chandler…came home early."

Monica's mouth fell open in surprise as Chandler appeared from their bedroom. The other four stared directly at the TV as he brushed past Monica, staring straight ahead with a mixed expression of anger and hurt, and left the apartment, slamming the door behind him.

"Crap," Monica muttered as she rushed after him.

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"Stupid, idiotic, moronic…" Chandler muttered as he stomped down the stairs two at a time, ending up at Central Perk, "Thinks he can just be at the same movie store as her…"

He strode out of the coffee house and found himself under black clouds. Rain pelted at him from what seemed like all sides; he knew that was not possible, but felt so terrible that logic wasn't exactly appealing at the moment. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he sat on a bench near Central Perk. People walked by, but he didn't see their faces…no, he didn't see them…but he _did _see red…this must be what Ross meant when he said "Red Ross"…

Anger was cursing through his body like fire; why, _why_ did that stupid, idiotic _Richard_ have to come back? His head dropped into his hands…it was extremely soothing, sitting in the soaking rain, not thinking, allowing his mind to go numb, with a comforting hand on his shoulder…

_A comforting hand on his shoulder?_

He looked up and saw Monica standing above him, looking down concernedly. He shifted over and she sat next to him. The moment of silence (in which Chandler avoided eye contact with her) ended when she said quietly, "I'm sorry."

He shook his head, "You didn't do anything wrong."

"I just saw him in the store, I wouldn't have talked about it if I'd known you were home, I know you hate him-"

"I don't…I don't _hate_ him," Chandler said slowly. Monica gave him a slightly confused look and he continued, every once and a while brushing rain from his face, while staring at his shoes, "It's just…you thought he was perfect…you thought you two together were perfect. And then something big came between you two…and it didn't work out, and both of you were so hurt by it."

At this point he turned to Monica, "And whenever I think about him…or see him…or hear about him…I'm so… _so frickin' scared_," he continued, staring at her. "I think you and me…we're perfect. I'm so afraid that something…something's going to happen to _us_. Something big…and I'm just afraid that I'm going to lose you like he lost you."

He looked down again, then back up at the sky; rain fell onto his face, but he didn't notice it. He had just told Monica his deepest, darkest fear; the fear that one day, they might be separated. There were not many things Chandler Bing could count on in his world- his friends were just about it. But Monica…she was so much more than any friend, even the ones he'd known for nine years and beyond; she was his life, his love, his everything. The thought of losing her was such a terrible one that it was locked away and only came out when Richard came back into their lives. Chandler knew that Richard was still in love with Monica; he did not want to be left like that, still in love with this friend of his, but no longer able to see her, touch her, or talk to her everyday…

"Chandler?" Monica asked quietly. He turned to her and gave her one of his small, cute smiles.

"Have I ever told you," Chandler murmured, brushing away several strands of hair from her face as rain continued to splash down, "how incredibly_ beautiful_ you are?"

Monica smiled almost shyly, her heart pounding as the rain lashed about them…this was ridiculous…her heart hadn't beat this fast since they'd gotten engaged…since they'd gotten married…since he said he wanted a baby too, since she realized everything she'd been looking for all her life was right under her nose the whole time when they were in London…Now that she thought about it, every breath-taking moment, every second of pure bliss that she could remember had been with this man, the one who was leaning in to kiss her… the man whose lips were now on her…the one whom she was now kissing back…the one whom she could feel passion for, truly make love to, while also feel the dependable friendship she'd known for so long…how could she have possibly thought that there might have been someone else for her?

And they both knew, at the precise moment in time, that despite any troubles that were to come, nothing could tear them apart.

Not even the rain.

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Just some Mondler mush for y'all…So anyway, please review! Otherwise…I'm not writing any more fics:::drumroll: I'm just jokin'…also, if anyone knows a place to enter Script Fanfics for Friends, please tell me in the review/ email me at 


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